Medicaid Program; Community Engagement Requirement for Certain Individuals

Document 2026-11094 is a Final Rule published by the Department of Health and Human Services in the Federal Register on June 3, 2026, with an effective date of July 31, 2026. This interim final rule with comment period (IFC) interprets and implements the community engagement requirement in Medicaid under section 1902(xx) of the Social Security Act. States are required to implement the new requirement no later than January 1, 2027. This IFC specifies the requirements and expectations for States, including the Medicaid applicants and beneficiaries who must demonstrate community engagement as a condition of their eligibility, the types of qualifying activities that satisfy the community engagement requirement, the criteria to meet an exception from the requirement (that is, be deemed compliant), and the criteria to meet a specified exclusion from the requirement. It also specifies requirements for verification of qualifying activities, outreach to affected populations, steps States must take if they determine individuals are noncompliant, and additional operational considerations for States. Finally, this IFC specifies implementation timing and establishes new State reporting requirements. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/06/03/2026-11094/medicaid-program-community-engagement-requirement-for-certain-individuals.

No. Document 2026-11094 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.